Abdominal exercises are considered to be some of the most difficult and rigorous of exercises. Many persons find themselves in need of developing and toning their abdominal muscles for such purposes as eliminating large stomachs and waists, and for correcting various posture and back problems. However, many such persons find abdominal exercises to be overly difficult or impossible to perform and quickly become discouraged from exercising. Other persons in better physical condition desire to be able to perform more repetitions of particular abdominal exercises for such purposes as increasing endurance, stamina and including abdominal exercises in aerobic fitness routines. Numerous devices for use in exercising the abdominal muscles are known in the art. One such device is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,752,067 which shows an exercise device having a contoured shape for receiving a user's pelvic and lumbar regions. slots therethrough forming handles and a rocker portion on the underside on which the device is balanced and pivoted during use. Such device is limited however in that the contoured portions may not be suitably sized and shaped for receiving a particular user's anatomy and it may be difficult for some persons, especially those just beginning an exercise routine, to balance and pivot the device on the rocker portion. Another shortcoming of such device is that the handles may be uncomfortable for some users to grasp and may place the user's arms in uncomfortable positions. No known device for use in exercising the abdominal muscles provides the ease of use and capability for varying the degree of assistance from the upper body and arms to the abdominal muscles that are provided by the present invention.